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Windows file search for files and images

Ultrasearch opens over your Windows apps with one shortcut. Search file and folder names, find supported text files by meaning, and look for images by what appears in them.

Press Win + Alt, enter a name or phrase, then use the arrow keys and Enter to open a result.

Set up local search

  1. Install and sign in

    Install the Windows app and use your Ultrasearch account. The first index is created on the PC where you run the app.

  2. Choose what to include

    By default, UltraSearch indexes Desktop, Documents, Downloads, Pictures, and Videos. In the app’s Settings, add folders to the ignored list if you do not want them searched.

  3. Search across results

    Open the search bar with Win + Alt. A file name, folder name, or ordinary phrase can find matching local items; choose a result to open it.

From a remembered detail to an open file

  1. Remember part of the name

    For a spreadsheet named Budget October.xlsx, try budget ext:xlsx. The extension narrows the result list to spreadsheet names.

  2. Recognize its location

    Check the directory beside a result to distinguish files with similar names. If you need its location in another app, click the directory to copy it.

  3. Open it or keep it nearby

    Select the result and press Enter to open it. Drag a result onto the screen-edge shortcut wheel to keep quick access to the same item.

For a photo, try a description such as “red bicycle” after visual indexing finishes. For a document format whose contents are not supported, start with its file name. See more search query examples.

What does Windows file search include?

File and folder names

Ultrasearch indexes names and paths in the five default folders listed above. Its local metadata search can find common file types by name and location. PDF, Word, and spreadsheet contents are not included in semantic text search.

Text inside supported files

While the app is running, background indexing reads supported .txt, .md, and .rst files. It sends bounded excerpts through the Ultrasearch service to an AI service for search vectors; the original file remains on your PC. See the privacy policy for processing details.

Images and video

Visual search can match supported image and video previews by their contents, in addition to their names. Small previews are analyzed by an AI service; the original media files stay on your computer.

Recent copied text

Search can include clipboard text captured during the last 24 hours. Clipboard history is stored locally on the PC. You can also pin a clipboard result to the shortcut wheel for longer-term quick access.

If a file does not appear

  1. Check its location

    Only the five default folders and their subfolders are included. A file outside those locations will not appear in local search.

  2. Check indexing and exclusions

    Background indexing runs while the app is open. After adding a folder, allow its initial scan to finish and check Settings to confirm the folder is not ignored. The app skips common system, cache, and generated folders.

  3. Search by name or path

    File-content search currently supports plain text, Markdown, and reStructuredText files. Other document formats can still match by their names and paths.

To search remote results beside local ones, read how to search connected apps from Windows. For natural-language answers, see how to ask Agent, or download Ultrasearch for Windows.